Practice golf club



May 8, 1962 G. K. HAUSE PRACTICE GOLF CLUB Filed April 22, 1960 INVENTOR. a r/Jar? )5 Haz/se.

BY 7 if XNZf/S United States Patent ship Filed Apr. 22, 1960, Ser. No. 24,056

2 Claims. (Cl. 273-193) This invention relates to practice golf clubs and, particularly, to a practice golf club having an improved hinge construction.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a practice golf club having an improved hinge interposed in the shaft thereof which permits the head of the club to pivot relative to the grip when the club is improperly swung, yet which operates to keep the shaft rigid and straight when the club is swung properly.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a hinge for a practice golf club of the above character in which any detectable looseness of fit between the hinge parts resulting from wear or normal dimensional tolerances is minimized or substantially eliminated.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a hinge for a practice golf club of the above character in which the centrifugal force of the club head is utilized to wedge the hinge parts awayvfrom one another to take up any looseness between the hinge pin and the apertures of the-hinge parts through which the hinge pin extends.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a hinge for a practice golf club of the above character which is operable to keep the shaft portions on opposite sides thereof in proper alignment during correct usage of the club and which eliminates undesired lateral wobble.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is an elevational view of a hinged practice golf club embodying the principles of the present invention;

FIGS.' 2 -and are sectional views of the hinge structure illustrated in FIG. 1, taken along the lines 2--2 and 33 thereof, respectively;

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the two hinge members shown in FIGS. 2 and 3; and

FIGS. 5 and 6 are views showing the use of the golf club illustrated in FIG. 1 in proper and improper swings, respectively.

Referring now to the drawings, FIGURE 1 illustrates a training or practice golf club having a head 10 connected to the lower end of a shaft 12. The shaft 12 is provided at its upper end with a grip 14. The head 10 is.

illustrated in the drawing as a forged metal member of the type normally referred to as an iron in golf terminology. It will be appreciated, however, that the head 10 may be of the wood configuration or comprise any suitably shaped mass of material having a face adapted to make contact with a golf ball. The grip 14 is adapted to form a hand gripping portion and may be made from rubber, leather, cork composition or simply may comprise the upper end portion of the shaft itself. As used herein, the term grip is intended to mean any portion of the shaft or any material attached to the shaft which is intended to be grasped by the user for the purpose of swinging the club. The shaft 12, illustrated herein, is shown as being of tubular metal, which is the most common type of golf club shaft in current use. It will be appreciated, however, that any suitable material may be used for the shaft, as, for example, wood, fiber glass or the like.

- connected by a hinge pin 26.

3,033,575 Patented May 8, 1962 ICC The shaft 12 is divided into two parts: an upper shaft portion 16 having the grip 14 at the upper end thereof and a lower shaft portion 18 connected to the head 10. Interconnecting the shaft portions 16 and 18 is a hinge 20 including a pair of hinge members 22 and 24 pivotally The hinge 20 is designed to permit the head 10 and lower shaft portion 18 to pivot rearwardly relative to the upper shaft portion 16 and grip 1'4, and when the club is swung improperly such pivotal action will occur. When the club is swung correctly, however, the hinge 20 is operable to maintain the shaft portions 16 and 18 in alignment. In other words, the hinge '20, which is interposed in the shaft 12, is intended to cause the shaft to break or bend to indicate to the user that the club is not being swung properly. It has been found that desirable results are achieved by using a lower shaft portion 18 which is approximately six inches in length, although shaft portions of varying lengths may be used.

The construction and arrangement of parts of the hinge 20 maybe clearly seen in FIGS. 2-4, wherein the lower hinge member 24 will be seen to include a hollow, depending cylindrical portion 27, a collar 28 at one end of the portion 27 and a tongue 30 on the opposite side of the collar 28. The tongue 30 is provided with an aperture 32 extending laterally therethrough. The upper hinge member 22 includes a hollow cylindrical portion 34 extending upwardly from a body portion 36 having a groove 38 formed therein adapted to receive the tongue 30 of the lower hinge member 24. The groove 38 divides or bifurcates the lower end of the hinge member 22 into a pair of apertured fingers 40a and 40b. The bottom or end of the groove 38 is defined by a sloping shoulder 42 which is engageable by a conformably inclined shoulder 44 formed onthe end of the lower hinge tongue 30. It will be seen that said shoulders engage one another on a plane extending from a downwardly and rearwardly direction to a forwardly and upwardly direction relative to the face of the club. The cylindrical portion 34 of the upper hinge member 22 is tightly fitted within the upper shaft portion 16 and is tightly held therein by means of a rivet 46. The cylindrical portion 27 of the lower hinge member is fitted within the end of the lower shaft portion 18 and is held therein by means of a rivet 48.

As viewed in FIG. 3, it will be seen that the lower hinge member 24 may pivot in a clockwise direction so that its shoulder 44 will move away from the shoulder 42 of the upper hinge member 22. This is a rearward direction relative to the face of the club head 10. Movement of the lower hinge member 24, in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 3, is limited by abutment of the shoulder 42 against the shoulder 44 and when in this position the shaft portions 16 and 18 are disposed in alignment. By virtue of the placement or angle of the hinge pin 26 relative to the head 10 of the club and also due to the centrifugal force of the club head 10 when being swung, the shaft portions 16 and 18 will stay in alignment when the club is properly swung, as is illustrated in FIG. 5. However, if the club is swung with a jerky motion, if the wrists are improperly rotated or pronated, or if the swing is otherwise improperly executed, the lower shaft portion 18 will pivot rearwardly to indicate the improper swing.

In practice, it has been found desirable to utilize stainless steel in the manufacture of the hinge 20, although it will be understood that other suitable materials could also be utilized. The design and shape of the hinge 20 has a distinct bearing on the efiiciency and desirability of theclub in performing its intended function. Due to the overall length of the shaft 12, any looseness in fit between the hinge members 22 and 24 is greatly magnified at the grip, which is located a substantial distance from the hinge. Although great care may be exercised in. the manufacture of the hinge parts 22 and 24 to insure the desired interfitting relationship therebetween, some dimensional tolerances must be provided for and, additionally, normal wear between the hinge parts will develop some looseness in the hinge. By the design of the hinge 20, the detectability or effect of any looseness in fit between the hinge parts is greatly minimized or substantially eliminated and the danger of any sensation of sloppiness on the part of the user is greatly dirnin ished. This function is achieved in several different ways. First, it will be noted that the tip or outer end 44a of the tongue shoulder 44 is disposed at a substantial distance from the hinge pin 26. The opposite sides of the tongue 30 adjacent to the shoulder tip 44a will abut against the walls defining the groove 38 during use of the club to prevent attempted lateral wobble of the lower shaft portion 18 relative to the upper shaft portion 16. The closer the tongue tip 44a is brought to the hinge 26 in the design of the hinge, the greater the likelihood of the lower shaft portion 18 wobbling. Additionally, some wear will occur between the hinge pin 26 and the aperture 32 of the tongue 30. This wear could result in some axial play between the shaft portions 16 and 18 being detected during the swing of the club. However, as the club is swung and particularly at the beginning of the downswing, a wedging action will occur between the inclined shoulders 42 and 54 which tends to force the hinge members 22 and 24 apart in a direction axially of the shaft. This wedging force results from the fact that the shoulders 42 and 44 abut on a plane which is inclined or disposed at an acute angle relative to the axis of the shaft 12. This axial force will take up any play or looseness in fit between the aperture 32 of the lower hinge member 24 and the hinge pin 26, which is carried by the upper hinge member 22. The wedging action is particularly produced by the force exerted by the user in swinging the upper shaft portion 16 downwardly reacting against either the inertia or centrifugal force of the head It). i

In addition to the above factors, the tip or end portion 44a of the lower hinge member shoulder 44 provides a positive stop whereby the hinge members may be made to accurately align with one another when the shoulders 42 and- 44 abut. It will be appreciated that the closer the tip 44a is to the hinge pin the greater the chance for error in alignment of the shaft portions 16 and 18 when the hinge members abut one another.

While it will be apparent that the preferred embodiment herein illustrated is well calculated to fulfill the objects above stated, it will be appreciated that the invention is susceptible to modification, variation and change without departing from the proper scope or fair meaning of the subjoined claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a practice golf club, having a grip at the upper end thereof and a head at the lower end thereof provided with a face on its forward side, and a shaft, a hinge interposed in said shaft and dividing said shaft into two portions, said hinge having a pair of binge members, one of said hinge members being fixed to one'of said shaft portions and the other of said hinge members being fixed to the other of saidshaft portions, a hinge pin pivotally connecting said hinge members, .one of said hinge members having a tip on its forward side spaced from said hinge pin and a shoulder inclined relative to the shaft portion to which it is fixed and extending toward said tip, the other of said hinge members having a shoulder engageable with the shoulder on said one hinge member, and said hinge members being arranged to permit rearward and upward pivotal movement of said head from a normal position with said shaft portions disposed in alignment and said shoulders in engagement.

2. In a practice golf club having a grip at the upper end thereof and a head at the lower end thereof provided with a face on its forward side, and a shaft, a hinge connected to said shaft between said grip and said head, said hinge having a pair of pivotally connected hinge members, one of said hinge members having a groove and the other of said hinge members having a tongue fitted within said groove, a hinge pin extending through said tongue and groove, said tongue having a tip disposed on the forward side thereof and a shoulder extending to said tip and inclined relative to the length of said shaft, said groove having a shoulder at the bottom thereof conformably engageable with the shoulder on said tongue, and said hinge members being arranged to permit rearward and upward pivotal movement of said head from a normal position in which said shoulders are engageable.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,497,237 Reineking Feb; 14, 1950 a i we 

